Kansas labor laws, including Kansas labor laws 2024, impact the daily lives of employees and employers in Kansas. Residents of Kansas have many questions that affect them every day regarding Kansas labor laws from minimum wage rates, overtime, wage payments, vacation and sick leave, child labor, meal and rest breaks, and more.
In addition to Kansas labor laws, employer must also comply with federal labor laws such as the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA), Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA), National Labor Relations Act (NLRA), Occupational Safety and Health Act (OSHA), and many other federal laws. And when federal laws are different from state Kansas labor laws, usually companies must comply with the law that provides their workers the best protection.
Below we provide comprehensive information and resources regarding your more pressing Kansas labor law questions to help you answer the question and help you make the right decision about you and your employment.
Minimum Wage
Under Kansas labor laws, Kansas’ current minimum wage is set at $7.25, equal to the federal minimum wage. Employers in the state that the Fair Labor Standard Act doesn’t cover do not need to comply with minimum wage laws.
Additionally, employees on salary must receive a minimum of one payment from employers monthly. With salaried employees, employers must provide payments within regular paydays. Employers must update minimum wage changes and payday schedules for employees. All of this documentation must be in writing.
For tipped employees, the minimum wage rate is currently $2.13. Employers who pay the tipped minimum wage must ensure employees meet the standard minimum wage, including tips.
Employers must pay the difference if an employee’s tipped wages and tips don’t meet the requirements. Moreover, it’s important to note that the state does not address tip sharing and pooling laws.
Visit our Kansas minimum wage information page to learn more about minimum wage in Kansas.
Related topic covered on other pages include:
Overtime
Kansas labor laws require employers to pay overtime to employees not covered by the federal Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) at a rate of one and half times (1½) their regular rate of pay when they work more than 46 hours in a workweek, unless otherwise exempt. KS Statute 44-1203.
Federal laws under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) state that employees are eligible for overtime at their regular hourly rate if they work more than 40 hours per week unless otherwise exempt. Standard overtime pay is 1.5 times the regular pay. See FLSA: Overtime for more information regarding overtime requirements.
Prevailing Wages
Kansas does not have a prevailing wage law that governs wage rates on government project or service contracts.
Under Kansas labor law, employers may be required to pay residents wage rates established by federal prevailing wage rates and rules. The prevailing wage rates may be different from the federal and state’s standard minimum wage rates.
Employees may be eligible for prevailing wages if they work on government or government-funded construction projects or perform certain government services. See the Davis-Bacon and Related Acts, McNamara-O’Hara Service Contract Act (SCA), and Walsh-Healey Public Contracts Act (PCA) for more information about prevailing wages.
Meals and Breaks
Kansas labor laws do not have any laws requiring an employer to provide a meal period or breaks to employees, thus the federal rule applies. KS Dept. of Labor Workplace Laws FAQs. The federal rule does not require an employer to provide either a meal (lunch) period or breaks.
However, if an employer chooses to do so, breaks, usually of the type lasting less than 20 minutes, must be paid. Meal or lunch periods (usually 30 minutes or more) do not need to be paid, so long as the employee is free to do as they wish during the meal or lunch period. DOL: Breaks and Meal Periods.
Nursing Mother Breaks
Kansas labor laws do not require employers to provide nursing mothers with breaks to express breast milk. However, the federal Fair Labor Standards Act requires certain employees to provide nonexempt nursing mothers for one (1) year following a child’s birth with reasonable rest breaks to express milk and private spaces, other than a bathroom, to express breast milk.
Vacation Leave
Kansas employers are not required to provide employees with unpaid or paid vacation leave. In instances where they opt to offer these benefits, they must meet the terms of the employment contract or established policy.
Also, employers and employees may enter agreements where employees are denied pay for accrued vacation upon termination of employment.
By law, employers can cap the total amount of vacation leave employees can accrue over their employment. It is also possible for employers to deny payment for accrued unused vacation time if employees do not comply with eligibility requirements. These requirements may include:
- Giving two weeks’ notice
- Gaining employment during a specific time of year
Visit our Kansas vacation leave information page to learn more about vacation leave in Kansas.
Sick Leave
Employers in Kansas are not obligated to provide employees with sick leave benefits, either paid leave or unpaid leave. It is also important to note that employers must give employees unpaid sick leave based on the Family and Medical Leave Act. Other federal laws may also apply to employers who must grant unpaid sick leave.Visit our Kansas sick leave information page to learn more about sick leave in Kansas.
Holiday Leave
Private employers in the state aren’t required to give employees unpaid or paid holiday leave. Private employers can also require employees to work on holidays without premium pay or 1.5x their regular rate, for example. If the employee qualifies for overtime during said holidays, they must be paid a premium rate.
In instances where employers offer unpaid or paid holiday leave, they must abide by the terms set in their employment contract. Additionally, employers must follow any terms laid out in their established policies.
Visit our Kansas holiday leave information page to learn more about holiday leave in Kansas.
Jury Duty Leave
Under Kansas law, when employees must attend a jury summons or jury duty, employers aren’t required to pay employees for their time off. Also, employers cannot penalize, threaten, coerce, or discharge employees for attending to such duties.
Visit our Kansas jury duty information page to learn more about jury duty leave in Kansas.
Voting Leave
Employees are granted special permissions during voting seasons to cast their ballots. The state requires employers to allow registered voters to leave work for two hours to vote. If the polls are open after or before an employee’s shift, the voter can take no longer than two hours off work.Visit our Kansas voting leave information page to learn more about voting leave in Kansas.
Severance Pay
Kansas labor laws do not require employers to provide employees with severance pay. KS Dept. of Labor Workplace Laws FAQs. If an employer choose to provide such benefits, it must comply with the terms of its established policy or employment contract.
Unemployment
If eligible, Kansas work law may provide unemployment benefits unemployed employees while searching for an alternate job. That said, there are eligibility requirements residents must meet to receive unemployment benefits. These eligibility requirements include:
- Applicants must have been paid wages from insured employment for a minimum of two quarters.
- Applicants’ total wages must be at least 30x greater than their weekly benefit amount.
- Applicants must be either totally or partially unemployed to apply for benefits.
Visit Kansas’ unemployment information page to learn more about unemployment benefits in Kansas.
Other Kansas Labor Laws Topics and Resources
There are several other Kansas labor laws governing the employers and their workplaces. Below are those topics and resources:
- Kansas Child Labor Laws covers topics including work during school hours and summer hours, school days and summer days (usually June 1 to Labor Day), hour restrictions, work permit, and hazardous occupations.
- Kansas discrimination and civil rights laws are enforced by the Kansas Human Rights Commission. Employees are also protected by federal discrimination laws enforced by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commissioner (EEOC). The state and federal discrimination laws offer employees protections and violations based on the following:
| Disability (a mental or physical impairment) | Sex, including sexual harassment | Gender expression | National Origin |
| Race (includes hair texture) | Sexual orientation | Religion | Ancestry |
| Creed | Gender identity | Age (40+) | Pregnancy, childbirth, and related conditions |
| Color | Genetic screening and testing | Retaliation |
- The Kansas Wage Payment Act covers topics such as employee’s wages, frequency and manner of wage payments, regular paydays, pay period, deductions, direct deposit and payroll cards, itemized statement of deductions, pay stub, record keeping, final paychecks, unpaid wages, and notice requirements.
- Kansas labor laws regarding minimum wage and overtime exemptions covering non-exempt and exempt employees and salary basis.
- Kansas statutes regarding hours worked including rest breaks, meal breaks, on-call, waiting, travel, sleeping, and meeting times.
- The Kansas Department of Labor Industrial Safety and Health Division enforces the state laws and regulations regarding workplace safety and health. Occupational Safety and Health Act (OSHA) that covers federal workplace safety and health requirements.
- Active employees, including those in the national guard, and veterans may also be eligible for military leave under the federal Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act (USERRA).
- The Kansas Department of Labor Workers Compensation Division manages the state’s worker compensation insurance claims and enforcement. Employees who are injured on the job may be entitled to workers’ compensation benefits that minimizes the financial impact on the employee.
